Had her mother always been like this? It didn’t fit with the memories Liala had of her. Maybe the responsibility her mother was now carrying on her shoulders made the difference. It would make sense. And, thinking of that she was actually grateful for having those memories and not have grown up with a mother who was the leader first and a mother second.
“Why are you a falcon, Malia?” She asked, even though she hadn’t intended to; but her little half-sister turned around and beamed at her; it pulled on Liala’s heartstrings.
“We start shifting when we’ve reached puberty because before that our bodies are too fragile,” Malia explained cheerfully. “Some of us, who are descendants of divine blooded shifters, have the gift to mind shift.” She sounded as if she was quoting some wise person. Maybe one of the elders? Or the shaman?
“Mind shift?” Liala repeated and did her best to not sound as if this was the weirdest thing she had heard today and that wasn’t little.
“It’s what I call it,” Malia looked proud and happy, proud for making up such a term and happy that she had someone to actually tell about it. “We can shift our minds into other animals and take them over for some amount of time. If the animal likes us and allows us to take it, then you can do it longer.”
“Completely makes sense to me,” Liala nodded and her little half-sister looked like a Cheshire cat. “How do you do it?”
“Well, you sort of dream and roam around, finding an animal you can ask,” Malia shrugged as if it was nothing. “You just have to ask nicely, I guess.”
“And it doesn’t have to be a wolf?” Liala inquired, not hesitating as the little girl was opening the door to her room and walked the both of them in.
“No,silly!” Malia chuckled. “If you have the gift of mind-shifting, it can be any animal, just like divine blooded can take any form that fits their own body.”
“Wait, what?” Liala was confused again.
“Didn’t mom tell you?” Malia asked. “Probably not…” She answered that question herself. “The thing about us divine blooded shifters is that we can take any form that is physically possible for us.” Again, the little girl sounded as if she was quoting someone else. “The first animal we shift into is usually the one we feel closest to. Mom told me, it’s because it’s the form they were received in? If you know what that means?”
“I know what it means,” Liala nodded, hoping that the girl wouldn’t ask for an explanation.
So, I feel like I am a wolf because mom was a wolf when she got pregnant with me… great.
“Are you divine blooded?” Liala asked the little girl, but instantly was mad at herself for asking.
“My grandma was divine blooded, but my grandpa wasn’t, so, I guess I’m not,” Malia shrugged again and sat down on her bed, looking at her big sister.
“So, you couldn’t be the heir?” Liala wondered, hating that she had to ask; but if there was the chance that she herself wasn’t the true heir, she could just go and save her brother without troubling herself with being responsible for something old and ancient to cease to exist.
“Why?” Malia asked. “You are the heir.” Sounding as if she didn’t understand what her question was all about.
Liala did her best to suppress a sigh and smile at the girl. She felt tired suddenly, worn out, and beat up. All this was a lot to take in and most of what she had learned today was too strange to take seriously. Under normal circumstances, at least. Liala had no clue why she was even trying to make sense of it all. As far as she knew, a terrible fate was waiting for her when the sun set. Nothing would be of importance once that happened. So long as she could make sure her little brother would be safe.
So, why is it still bothering me? Why am I worrying my head about this? Because a part of me knows that it’s true? That it is actually real, even if it sounds crazy?
Liala tried to remember more of the fairy tales her mother had told to her, when she was younger. It was something that had connected the two of them, but when her mother had ‘died’ and Liala had to grow up she didn’t care about them anymore. The first thing you stop doing when you have to be an adult in a child’s body is believe in fairy tales. It had been more important to Liala that her brother would at least have a normal childhood. And that had been destroyed in just one night, because of her wanting to feel close to her mom again, to relive a small part of her childhood she had kept alive.
Irony’s a bitch.
“You are going to go, aren’t you?” Malia suddenly was earnest again – it was almost creepy.
“Yes,” Liala nodded, not seeing any sense in lying when this girl seemingly knew the truth anyway.
“He won’t keep his promise,” Malia spoke, certainty deepening her voice. “He just wants you to meet him, so that he can have his revenge.”
“I know,” Liala answered, looking at her eerie little sister, apologetically. “But I have to try anyway.”
“Then let me help,” Malia gave back.
Was there hope in her voice?
“How?” Liala frowned, trying to stop that emotion from infecting her.
“I’ll come with you, here,” her little sister pointed at her head. “I have a friend. She’s an owl. I nursed her back to health with mom when she fell from her nest.”
“I don’t want you to jeopardize yourself,” Liala shook her head.
“I won’t, but you can tell Benjy to follow me,” Malia suggested, holding her own hands, almost as if she were begging for her big sister to agree.
“You’ll come with me, and when things are starting to get bad, you’ll bring Benjy to mom?” Liala guessed the rest of her little sister’s plan.
“Yes.” Malia tilted her head to the side slightly, her eyes big as saucers.
“You really are my little sister,” Liala sighed and smiled at the girl, who wanted to help, no, who needed to help; after all, this was family.
“You have to promise me that you won’t be in danger at any point, Malia,” Liala was the one who spoke earnestly now. “I need to know that you are completely safe.”
Her little sister was beaming at her again, probably, because she hadn’t expected her to say ‘yes’ to her idea.
The morning turned into afternoon without Kiana and Liala having seen another person, with one exception. One of the twins – and none of the girls knew which one it was – had brought them lunch. While her cousin had done her absolute best to completely ignore the guy, Liala was watching him closely. After all, she had run one of them over with a SUV, but she actually wasn’t sure if he was limping or not.
Liala had agonized ever since Kiana let her into her room, about how to tell her what was about to happen; and if she should even mention that the twins were into her, because what would then happen?
“Brenna’s dad wants an exchange,” she blurted out the most important fact. “You and me, for my little brother.”
“What about your dad?” Kiana asked and Liala flinched because she hadn’t thought of the possibility that her best friend might come up with that question. “And Rick?”
Rick, the only guy she had trusted, who had been the only person she shouldn’t have trusted.
“He’s not on our side,” Liala pushed through her teeth. “Rick, that is. My dad is… he’s dead.”
“What? Wait a second!” Kiana shouted and jumped off her bed, tossing her plate to the ground, which burst into countless shards.
“I don’t think that anything will happen to you, Kiana,” Liala tried to remain calm, hoping that her cousin would not freak out. “You’re not like me or the others. You are human. Brenna’s dad and the other hunters don’t have any reason to hurt you.”
“But they have reason to hurt you,” Kiana sat down and continued her best friend’s train of thought, her heart instantly jumping into overdrive for a second time. “I do remember what happened last night, Lia; what happened to Brenna last night. They will do the same to you when you turn yourself over. And what about your brother?” Her words s
tarted tumbling from her mouth. “He’s at least half of what you are. Why would they let him go? After what happened?”
“There is no guarantee that they will,” Liala worried her hands, avoiding Kiana’s stare.
“So why let me live when I’m nothing more than a witness to all of this?” her cousin asked.
Liala’s breath got stuck in her throat. The entire time that possibility hadn’t crossed her mind. Would Brenna’s father really kill an innocent human? Then again, she would have never thought that her own mother would just stand by while a living being was raped and torn to shreds. In this new world they were living in, any cruelty could come true.
“It is your choice, Kiana,” Liala’s voice was hoarse when she spoke. “You can come with me and be part of the exchange, or you can stay and become part of the clan.”
“Come again?” her cousin croaked.
“You can have a home here,” Liala tried to explain. “You can become part of the clan. Become a shifter. If I bite you, you will become one of us, a half-breed, but still part of our family, if you want to. And if you want to, you can have two protectors. My mother told me that the twins have an interest in you. But, as far as I know, within this clan the female choses, not the males.”
“Are you telling me that I can become a werewolf?” Kiana frowned, hesitantly.
“A wolf shifter, yes,” Liala nodded, still avoiding her cousin’s glance.
“So, if you bite me now, will I turn tonight?” Kiana moved closer to her, reaching out and grabbing her arm. “I could come with you and help to save you?”
In disbelief, Liala looked at her cousin, trying to put the pieces of the puzzle together that she just had revealed to her. It would be perfect to not only have one, but two aces in her hand. But this new world she was living in was just that: new. She didn’t know the rules and couldn’t be sure if what Kiana suggested would work.
“I don’t know,” she shook her head, honestly.
10 – Enemy
Liala knew that, when she heard the knock on her cousin’s door, it was time to get ready for the meet. She had never felt hope her mother could come up with any plan to stop the inevitable happening. So, when she opened the door and looked at her mother, she didn’t ask. She just smiled at her slightly.
“I’ll bring Benjy home, mom,” Liala told her mother, even though this place was as far from home as it could possibly be.
She didn’t say it for her mom, she said it for herself, just like someone walking down the green mile lying to themselves that heaven was waiting for them on the other side, when all there was waiting was pain, suffering, and death. They all knew and they all stayed silent.
Liala was somewhat grateful that her mother didn’t say a word. She didn’t try to convince her to change her decision. No one did.
When she stepped out of the mansion, Kiana right next to her, Nate took his place by her side without giving her a look that would have made her falter. His expression was the same as hers, full of determination, and so was her cousin’s. All three of them knew that they were probably walking to their deaths, and so did everyone else.
Liala felt as if the entire town had gathered on the forecourt, just to see the three of them walk down the main street towards the gates and beyond that. Her mother met her at the base of the stairs, once again enfolding her face with both of her hands, this time moving it so that she could place a kiss on her forehead.
“You better make it out of there alive,” she whispered to her, sorrow and worry lowering her voice.
“I won’t make a promise I’m not sure I won’t break, mom,” Liala murmured back and earned a teary smile in return, while her mother squeezed her cheeks.
“He better keeps his promise, if he doesn’t…” her mom said.
“I’m very certain he knows what will happen, if he does not live up to his promise, I’m just not sure if he cares,” Liala answered, lowly. “But I am certain that he will keep me alive, which will buy you time.”
Her mother looked at her as if she wasn’t sure what her daughter was talking about.
“Time, to find me,” Liala tried to speak evenly, but her voice was shaky. “If I were him and lost my daughter to my biggest enemy, I would make the child of my enemy suffer even more. I know what I am running into. I just don’t know if Nate or Kiana have any idea what will happen. I wish I could go on my own, but Benjy needs someone to get him out of there.”
Liala could read off her mother’s face that she had one solution for the entire situation, but she didn’t want to hear it. It stung her deeply that the woman in front of her even thought of it as a possibility.
“Stop thinking about it, I will not abandon my little brother. He is more my son than yours, and that is the only reason I can forgive you for even considering it.”
Her mother stayed silent, but Liala could see by the change in her expression that she had been right about her mother’s thoughts. She didn’t have to try and mind-read; she was already pretty good at reading people on her own.
Kiana was standing behind her the entire time, a part of her probably seeking protection while she looked at those who had gathered, maybe trying to find the twins among them. They had spoken about the possibility of her staying and becoming a shifter; and it made things easier on Kiana that Liala was feeling just as lost and confused as she was. The only difference between them was that Liala didn’t have a choice. There was no way back for her, only the way ahead, which made her a little jealous.
Liala didn’t have time to search the crowd for the twins, she only hoped that if they decided to follow them, they would stay far enough away to not ruin everything. Just when she had finished her conversation with her mother, she could see Nate walk through the gathered people, towering over most of them. Liala couldn’t help but ask herself if his size was a result of his Wendigo heritage. Thinking of that she felt as if she could see how his body appeared to be slightly slenderer than he probably should be for his height, or maybe she was just seeing things because the information her mother had given her was messing with her head.
“It’s time to go,” Nate proclaimed, and Liala had the feeling that he was overstepping an invisible line.
After all, as far as she had learned, within the shifter communities the females were the ones to make decisions and give orders.
“It is,” she just nodded towards him and looked at her mother again, prying her hands from her face. “This is not farewell,” she told her mother, whose head barely moved to agree with her.
Liala was grateful that her mom was not saying anything and just stepping aside. She knew already that the woman who had abandoned her for over ten years felt as if she was losing her first born all over again.
Maybe she is.
Kiana sped up to take her place left of Liala while she fell in pace with Nate who was guiding them down the street and towards the camping spot, where they would meet Brenna’s dad. Liala tried to ignore the glances of all those people she didn’t know and felt relieved when none of them followed. She didn’t turn around, because she didn’t want to see the expression on her mom’s face; she could already feel a piercing pain where her heart was.
None of them were making a sound as they stepped through the huge enforced metal gate that was opened for them. Standing so close to the wall, Liala could see that on top of it was barbed wire, which was possibly electrified.
Liala fought down the urge to reach out and take either Nate’s or Kiana’s hand. She knew that she had to be strong now. Who knew when they would start watching them approaching the meeting point? She didn’t want to give anything away. Yes, they knew that Kiana was her friend, but they didn’t know her connection with Nate.
It took some time until Liala recognized the surroundings, realizing that when she had run from the pack, she had been running in the opposite direction. The forest was unharmed in the area they passed through, and when they reached the camping spot, where a fire was burning high.
For some reason Liala had hoped that they would be there first, because at least then she would have had the feeling of being somewhat in control, but they weren’t.
“Lia!” Her little brother shouted, the second they broke through the underbrush, entering the clearing.
Benjy wanted to run to his sister, but a bear of a man was holding him captive with only one hand to his neck. It felt like a punch to her stomach, seeing her little brother as a hostage.
Brenna’s father had brought only two people with him. One of them was holding Benjy, the other one had a rifle in his hands, and that was something that made her feel even more uncomfortable.
“I am glad that you have decided to show up, Liala,” Brenna’s father spoke first and she noticed that he was the first to say her full forename.
“I’ve held up my end of the bargain,” she instantly said. “I brought along Kiana and only one of my mom’s pack. There is no one else here.”
Silence spread between them, until a call of a close by owl disturbed it. Liala did her best to keep a straight face, and she felt as if she succeeded. Looking at the expression on Brenna’s dad’s face, she knew that the cry of the owl confirmed her words to him, which was a good thing.
“My brother for Kiana and me,” she spoke, calmly.
“That was the deal,” Brenna’s father agreed, and Liala felt a bottomless pit where her stomach should be.
Just like I thought. He’s betraying me.
“I asked for Kiana, so that she could take care of your little brother – excuse me – half-brother,” he continued.
How in the hell does he know?
Liala’s eyes instinctively landed on Benjy, whose face got even paler.
“He is my brother,” Liala emphasized the last word.
“So, your mother didn’t tell you that the man, who you were taught to believe was your father, isn’t your father?” Brenna’s dad questioned.
HOWL and HUNT the HEIR: HOWL 1-3 (Dark World) Page 14